Wednesday 1 September 2010 17.45 EDT
First published on Wednesday 1 September 2010 17.45 EDT

The sight of Victoria Azarenka collapsed in a heat-ravaged heap, then carried from the court in a wheelchair on her way to hospital, underlined the physical demands of this US Open, with only brief relief from the tail feathers of Hurricane Earl in sight tomorrow and 11 days to go in New York's hottest ever summer.

However, a be-capped Andy Murray, his pale Scottish skin smothered in sun screen and his demeanour ice cool, came through the first-round match unstretched against the unseeded Slovakian Lukas Lacko.

Murray, who teetered in the even greater heat of Cincinnati two weeks ago, when he admitted he got his hydration wrong, looked in fine form on Arthur Ashe Court yesterday winning 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in nine minutes short of two hours. It was a comfortable win, but he did linger quite long in the sun.

Murray's reward for the win is a second-round match against Dustin Brown, born in Germany, raised and disillusioned in Jamaica, and keen to play Davis Cup for Great Britain – however unlikely that prospect is.

Brown soaked it up well enough out on the totally exposed court eight against the experienced Spaniard Rubén Ramírez Hildago, winning 6-4, 7-6, 7-5.

Dread-locked and loud in every sense, from his pyjama-like shorts and luminous orange and lime shoe laces to his unconfined celebration of his 21 aces, minced Hildago.

In heat tempered only by the sahara-like gusts that eddied through the baking crowd, he lit up every exchange with a brand of tennis rarely seen in the modern game, dismissive of risk and high on entertainment.

Brown was a big hit at Queen's this year and qualified for Wimbledon when he went inside the top 100, has lost more than he has won on the clay courts of Europe this year, five out of 13, and his ranking has slipped to 123. But his personality and his game are irresistible.

"I'm from Jamaica, so it felt like home out there today," he said after a match that detained him 149 minutes. Brown, angry at lack of support by the tennis federation in Jamaica, said he has not heard from the Lawn Tennis Association about qualifying for Great Britain, through his grandmother, since discussions at Wimbledon.

But he is happy to roam on the outskirts of Planet Tennis. He does not envy Andy Murray and the other superstars, he says, because he can play when he pleases – although not for any great financial return.

Making it to the big tournaments, like Wimbledon and US Open, eases his money worries. "You get $18,000 (£11,650) for coming here," he said, "so that's good. But I'm keeping the camper van at home, just in case."

Brown for years drove around Europe following the Challenger and Futures crumbs in a van bought for him by his parents.

This, though, is the journey of his life, mixing it in the big time, and he did not look at all out of place against Hildago.

On his day, Brown's power tennis is hard to counter. Yesterday was his day. Whether or not Friday will belong to him also is problematic. He has a killer serve, clever chip shots – "my favourite," he says – but lacks consistency. We should enjoy him in his brief bursts on to centre stage.

Azarenka, the women's 10th seed, was preparing to serve in the seventh game of the first set against the Argentinian Gisela Dulko when she staggered along the baseline, dropped to her knees and rolled on to her side, motionless, in front of a shocked Grandstand Court crowd.

She was the first, and so far, only, victim of a heatwave that has been broiling New York for nearly a week. It has affected some players more than others; Azarenka, though, was a story waiting to happen. Her temperament is as explosive as her screaming and she has a history of bailing out under pressure.

The 21-year-old Belarussian, wearing an all-black outfit hardly best suited to reflecting the heat, was taken to hospital and was recovering satisfactorily. Dulko, who was leading 5-1, rushed to her aid when she fell, and said later: "I was scared. She went to the floor. I was worried for her. I went to see her, brought some ice, did what I could do to help. It was terrible. I hope she is OK.

"It's tough to play out there. It's really hot, really humid. You sweat so much, sometimes it's impossible to hold the racket."

Azarenka looked unsteady on her feet from early in the match, which began in rising temperatures in late morning, and there were rumours that she might have been suffering from more than heat exhaustion. ESPN reported that she had complained earlier of blurred vision and had received medical attention before the match.

It is not the first time Azarenka has succumbed to tough conditions. At the Australian Open last year, she took a set off Serena Williams in the fourth round then quit in a tearful exit on a fiercely hot day, complaining of dizziness.

On that occasion she said she had been suffering from food poisoning the night before.